Photographic Short Stories

I love short stories, there is an art in condensing a meaningful narrative into a shorter text. It's deceptively difficult. I used to read a lot of Isaac Asimov's work and once tried writing in that style - it's astonishing how much Asimov can wring from straightforward language and description. From the surprise ending, to the funny, the poignant, through to the exquisite, short stories are a wondrous escape that needs little investment in time.

I've found the same for cinema, as much as I love Pixar's long form work, their short movies are my favourites, snippets of stupendous story-telling. If you haven't watched any, do seek them out.

I'm not sure whether photography is short story-telling. Most of the work I admire in photography is a series of work crafted over a long time, telling a story that has taken years to hone. Though individual photos can tell a short story, more often than not, there isn't enough of a narrative to really tell a story. Elliott Erwitt would be the exception for me. He is a master storyteller, often telling witty, whimsical, quirky little vignettes.

My favourite is this:

My own storytelling is nowhere near as good, but sometimes I like to try on a quiet day with short form stories. A sequence of images that say something simple, often silly.